Randy Jackson

Ransom Joseph Jackson
(Handsome Ransom)

• Bats Right, Throws Right
• Height 6' 1½", Weight 180 lb.
• School University of Texas at Austin, Texas Christian University
• High School Little Rock Central High School
• Debut May 2, 1950
• Final Game September 25, 1959
• Born February 10, 1926 in Little Rock, AR USA
• Died March 20, 2019 in Athens, GA USA

BR page

Biographical Information

Ransom "Randy" Jackson played ten seasons in the big leagues. Most of his professional career was spent with the Chicago Cubs organization and he was an All-Star in 1954 and 1955 while with the Cubs, but he made the 1956 World Series with the Brooklyn Dodgers.

Jackson was at Texas Christian University in 1945 and the University of Texas in 1946 and 1947. The Cubs signed him in 1947 and he hit .322 at Des Moines in 1948. After spending most of 1949 with Oklahoma City where he hit .298 with 19 home runs, he made his major league debut in May 1950. Most of 1950 was spent with Springfield where he hit .315 with 20 home runs.

He became a regular for the Cubs in 1951, hitting .275 with 16 home runs and 14 stolen bases (the stolen base count was sixth in the league that year). From 1953 to 1955 he hit 19, 19 and 21 home runs respectively.

In 1954, when black players Gene Baker and Ernie Banks broke the color line to become the double-play combo for the Cubs, Jackson was the third baseman. Jackson said that he had never played with blacks before, but that both Gene and Ernie were great guys.

While with the Dodgers he mostly roomed with Roger Craig and sometimes with Don Drysdale. He was the team's most-used third baseman in 1956, when they won the pennant, hitting .274 with 8 homers 53 RBIs in 101 games, but in the World Series, Jackie Robinson was the starter at third. Randy was limited to three pinch-hitting appearances, going 0 for 3 with a pair of strikeouts. A serious knee injury in 1957 hurt his career.

There has been only one game in major league history that ended with three consecutive batters hitting home runs, in the bottom of the last inning: the Dodgers against the Philadelphia Phillies, on June 29, 1956. The Phillies led 5-2 in the middle of the 9th. A walk, then a strikeout, then home runs from Duke Snider, Jackson, and Gil Hodges, and the Dodgers won 6-5. The hits from Jackson and Hodges were on consecutive pitches.

Later after baseball he sold life and health insurance.

Notable Achievements

• 2-time NL All-Star (1954 & 1955)
• 20-Home Run Seasons: 1 (1955)

Further Reading

• Ransom Jackson Jr. and Gaylon H. White: Handsome Ransom Jackson: Accidental Big Leaguer, Rowman & Littlefield, Lanham, MD, 2016. ISBN 978-1-4422-6154-9

Related Sites

• Randy Jackson at the SABR Bio Project
• A detailed biography appears here: Former Third Baseman Randy Jackson Enjoyed His 10-Year Career With Chicago And Brooklyn